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Mount Kilimanjaro Trek - A Climb to the Top of Africa

Hello Family,
Friends and Followers!

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you.

We are finally
to our Mount Kilimanjaro post! Some of you have been waiting to read
this one so here goes...

After our
safari, we had a day and a half to rest and prepare for our Mount Kilimanjaro
trek. There are several trekking options that range in length and
difficulty. We chose a 6-day, 5-night trek on the Machame Route. The
Machame Route is one of the more challenging routes and we really wanted to
push ourselves. We would have preferred to take a longer trek but we were working
on a budget and it was just too expensive. We decided not to join a group
as it really didn't save us that much money and we wanted a more personal
experience with the mountain at our own pace.

We booked our
trek through our bed and breakfast (Tembo Tamu in Moshi - look them up on
Tripadvisor) and went about as budget as you could go. Sandra and Frank were
more than generous with letting us borrow any items that we needed and even
gave us a discount for booking both our safari and trek with them. However,
there is truly no way to hike this mountain on a budget. We knew that
going into the hike so we were completely fine with the splurge.

The government
charges a ridiculous amount in camping fees and permits (for 6-days over
$760 per person). They also require everyone to have a minimum of
the following trekking crew members:

1 Guide

1 Assistant
guide

1 Cook

3 to 4 Porters
per person

Hiking Mount
Kilimanjaro is a totally different experience than hiking to Mount Everest Base
Camp. There is no comparing the two. There are no guesthouses or
restaurants on this trail...only tents and outdoor toilets. The porters must
carry everything from tents, to food, to sleeping bags...basically everything
you would need during your trek. The cook makes all meals for you and
your crew sets up and breaks down your tent each day. Even though we went as
cheap as you could go we still felt spoiled. At first we were a bit
uncomfortable with so many people taking care of us and carrying our things for
us but since it was the way of the mountain we quickly accepted it.

The government
sets a limit of 15 kgs (33 lbs) per porter. We were responsible for carrying a
day pack and 3 liters of water each. We went really light with our
packing and we were still required to have 7 porters between the two of us.
Some of our fellow trekkers had even more porters than us. It's the
government's way of stimulating the economy so we had no choice but to accept
it and if it means a job for the locals than we are all for it. Side note:
Each trekker is required to tip every crew member so we knew exactly what was
going on when they added a porter at the last minute. We went with a
company that paid above standard salaries to the crew members but we were asked
to tip quite generously at the end (over $550 for the two of us).

One of the
best things about the trek being so costly is that it limits the amount of
hiking traffic. Is was stated that around 55,000 people climb the
mountain annually. That is roughly the same amount of people that climb
to Mount Everest Base Camp in the month of October alone. Everyone who comes to
climb Mount Kilimanjaro is extremely dedicated and determined to summit the
mountain. Your crew will do anything and everything to get you to the top
of the mountain. The experience is well worth the money!

We headed to
the trail gate after breakfast. First, we made a stop at a local butcher
shop for fresh meat for the first few days on the trail. That's about as
fresh as it gets! To all of our vegetarian friends...look away!

It took about
45 minutes to register our permits, square away our porters and weigh all of
our supplies. Each porter had to weigh their load to make sure they were not an
ounce over 15 kgs. The porters were required to weigh their bags every
night at the campsite. The government means business on this trail!

Our crew
(Nickname - Kili Posse):

Anthony -
Guide

John -
Assistant Guide

Benson - Cook

Hansel -
Porter

Simon - Porter

Evan - Porter

Steve - Porter

Victor -
Porter

James - Waiter/Porter

Dennis -
Porter

Day 1: March
8th

Starting
altitude: 5,905 feet (1,800 meters)

Ending
altitude: 9,842 feet (3,000 meters)

It was around
noon before we set foot on the trail. The number one rule when climbing
Mount Kilimanjaro is "pole pole" which means slowly. Your
guide, assistant guide and porters repeat "pole pole" all day and
every day. When they say slowly, they mean SLOWLY. The first day we
were hiking at a painfully slow rate. It was so slow that at times we
felt like we were going backwards. You have to check your ego at the door
when hiking this mountain. We followed the advice of our Kili posse and
slowly put one foot in front of the other. Day one of the hike is about 4
hours through lush rain forest on a fairly well maintained trail.

Pole Pole

The start of
the rainy season is April. We knew we were pushing our luck with hiking
mid-March but we crossed our fingers that we would have dry weather.
Before we left for our hike, we met a guy that said the Farmer's Almanac
called for rain on March 8th, 9th and 10th. Guess that almanac was right
because it rained all three of those days. We put our ponchos on and
smiled through the rain. There was no such thing as raining on this
parade! Lucky for us, the rain went as fast as it came the first day.

Steve making a trip to the river for a reload of water.

Night one - Home sweet tent!

This is what you pay the big bucks for... shared bathrooms. Where business gets done!

Special shout
out to Jenn and Amie. Thank you so much for bringing Hot Tamales to Josh
in India. He rationed them out during the trek and it brought a smile to
his face each time he ate one. It helped on the rainy days.

Benson fueled us up with a delicious breakfast and we made our way out of the rain forest towards Shira camp.

Unbelievable views!

Still practicing pole pole.

The fog came in like a thick blanket over the hills.

Our packed lunch contained fried chicken!

These ravens wanted some of our fried chicken. You had to have eyes in the back of your head to make sure they didn't get their grubby little beaks on your food.

Anthony was always smiling! Leanne told him to flash those pearly whites her way for this great snap shot.

Introducing the most beautiful outhouse in the world...nestled on top of the clouds!

Day two greeted us with some fierce rain showers. Darn that almanac! We spent about 2 hours waiting out the rain in our tent.

Finally, the rain ceased, the clouds parted and we strapped on our shoes for a short hike for additional acclimatization.

There are no late nights on the mountain. We were zipped in our tent and asleep by 9:00 pm every night.

The next morning, Leanne sat for a few minutes to watch an incredible sunrise.

Low and behold, look what was right behind our tent??? A gorgeous view of Mount Kilimanjaro! We couldn't see this view the day before because of all the clouds. Poor Victor was sick so Josh gave him some of our medicine.

You won't
believe this but this was the conversation between Victor and Josh on one day
one:

Victor:
"You looked like a famous Colombian singer."

Josh:
"Colombian singer?"

Victor:
"Yes, he has long hair but I can't remember his name. He is very
famous."

Josh: "Do
you mean Carlos Vives?"

Victor;
"YES!"

Josh:
"How do you know that guy?"

Victor:
"His music is good. Do you listen to him?"

Josh: "No
but people tell me I look like him so I should start listening to his
music."

From this
point forward, Josh was referred to as Carlos by the Kili Posse! If you
remember back to our time in Delhi, India, Josh was stopped by a group of
Colombians that thought he was Carlos Vives and was begged to take pictures
with them. What's it going to be like when we get to Colombia?!

Day Three:
March 10th

Starting
elevation: 12, 598 feet (3, 840 meters)

Acclimatization
hike: 15, 092 feet (4, 600 meters)

Ending/Camping
elevation: 12, 926 feet (3,940 meters)

We set foot on
the trail early (7:00 am) in hopes of snapping a few shots of the mountain
before the clouds set in. Our mission for the day was to hike 5-6 hours
and camp at Baranco campsite. This day also included an acclimatization
hike to Lava tower before descending back down to Baranco camp.

Despite the cold, soggy weather, we couldn't help but have our happy faces on!

Is this scenery for real?

Here come those clouds that the mountain is famous for. Luckily, we were able to catch a few rays of sunshine before the clouds made their move on the landscape.

Good job, Kili Posse!

Trail view

Acclimatization hike - Lava Tower - 15, 092 feet (4, 600 feet)

We made it without a sign of a headache. Pole pole is the key to great success on the mountain. Also, drinking 3 liters of water helps too. Leanne went to the "bathroom" more than she had ever gone to the bathroom in a 5 hour stretch.

Lunch break

Leanne has evolved so much on this trip. Before our adventures, she wouldn't dare touch meat on the bone. She was such a meat on bone snob! Now she gets her hands greasy and even eats a few bites before handing it off to Josh to finish up. Team work!

Nature's bathroom. We had already downed 3 liters of water by this point and it wasn't even noon yet!

This tree, the name escapes us, reminded us of a Joshua Tree. There were valleys of these trees everywhere and they were extremely beautiful. We have taken a little too long admiring them because the rain opened up on us for the last 20 minutes or so of our hike. We were absolutely soaked from head to toe.

After sleeping and attempting to dry off in our tent the clouds moved out a little bit and we were able to walk around and snap a few pictures.

It was tough being soaking wet but the scenery that we got to enjoy once the rain was gone was breathtaking.

That night we had dinner with the guys in their tent because it was getting a little chilly. Our shoes were soaking wet and the guys were very cool and sat them by the fire to dry them out.

Day Four: March 11th

Starting elevation: 12, 926 feet (3,940 meters)

Ending elevation: 15, 092 feet (4, 600 meters)

Our day four picture was taken later in the day. Our camera was acting up in the morning because it was so cold. Leanne forgot to sleep with the camera in her sleeping bag so we had to let the camera thaw out before it would properly work again.

One of the most beautiful camping spots in the world!

We got an earlier start than everyone else at the campsite. The beginning of the day four trek required some scrambling up a narrow path so Anthony wanted us to have a head start on all of the porters. Despite the guys attempt at drying our shoes, they were still soaking wet. We couldn't wait for the sun to make it over our way to dry out our feet.

Almost...

Scrambling up the mountain.

Finally, the sun made it our way! Our feet dried out within minutes and the camera starting working right again.

On top of the world...or above the clouds! A man and his thoughts...

Even though Victor wasn't feeling well, he still had a smile on his face and a positive attitude while carrying 15 kgs on his back! He is one awesome man!

After our brief stop, we made our way onwards!

Check out that arch forming on the mountain? It reminded us of one of our favorite places in the world, Moab, Utah!

A hot lunch on the side of the mountain? These guys are too good to us. We were spoiled, spoiled. spoiled!!! The 7-day Machame Route trekkers stopped at this point to camp for the night. Since we were on the 6-day track, continued climbing after refueling. Barafu camp or bust!

Ominous-looking clouds began to appear in the horizon. Since our gear had finally dried out, we weren't taking any chances and suited up in all of our rain gear this time!

Of course, when we were ready for the rain, the sun greeted us instead. That must have been the trick. Suit up in your rain gear and the rain never shows. We were fine with that though!

Just as we made it to our campsite the clouds rolled in and the sleet started falling. The rain gods had our back this time because the sleet and snow blew out as fast as it blew in. Thank goodness!

It was cold at 15, 092 feet!

We ate an
early dinner at 5:30 pm, senior citizen style. We had to go to sleep as soon as
possible so we could get a few hours of rest before waking up at 11:00 pm to
begin the ascent to the summit.

Day Five:
March 12th

Summit Day

Starting
elevation: 15, 092 feet (4,600 meters)

Summit
elevation at Uhuru Peak: 19,341 feet (5,895 meters)

Ending/camping
elevation: 9,843 feet (3,00 meters)

The alarm
seemed to go off just as we had laid our heads on our pillows and had fallen
asleep. We lurched forward and changed into all of the warm clothes we
had packed. It was 11:00 pm on the day we had been waiting for. This was
the night/day we would summit Mount Kilimanjaro!

After some
coffee to warm our bodies, we unzipped the tent and took the cold night air
head on! Let's do this!!!

We hit the
trail at 11:40 pm and were wondering what we were getting ourselves into.
It was the middle of the night, pitch black, our camera was on the fritz
and our fingers were frozen so obviously we didn't get very many pictures.
As we labored to the top our guide and assistant guide sang African songs
to us to keep our spirits up. Leanne was having trouble catching her
breath and we both were starting to feel the effects of the altitude.
There was no way that we were going to stop though.

The hardest
part of the trip was seeing a dark ridge in the beginning of our trip that
never seemed to get closer. We were climbing with two other groups and
using each other as marks on where to stop and rest. After about four
hours of seeing this ridge in the distance we finally noticed the top of the
ridge getting higher and we were at the top of the ridge! This was Stella
Point, elevation 18, 829 feet (5,739 meters). Everybody in our little
group was feeling pretty terrible but very excited because we could see the top
of the mountain and were only 200 meters away. The rest of the climbers
took a rest but Leanne was feeling the adrenaline so Josh kept going with her.
On the final push towards the top we started to think, "Wait, 200
meters is still over 650 feet." We just put our heads down as the
first light started to peak over the distant horizon. At 5:55 AM we summited
and were the first group of our campsite to summit. Leanne's eyes welled up
with crocodile tears and she started to cry and Josh choked up when he saw her
crying. The mountain seemed to have some sort of power to evoke emotions
that we never even knew were there. Climbing and being barely able to
breathe gives you a lot of time to do nothing but think. All the things
we had been thinking on the way up came out and it was very emotional for us.
The reasons why we did this and the journey to get here. Not just
the climbing journey but the actual journey of being in Africa. Mount
Kilimanjaro is why we came here. Our minds were filled with memories of
friends and family we've lost before the trip and Josh's Aunt that he lost last
year while we were on our trip...not to mention all the friends and family we
left and miss so much. Of course Leanne's lifelong dream of climbing the
mountain poured out as well. You can see by reading this little section
that there was a flood of emotions and feelings flowing out at once...we made
it!

After catching
our breath, the sun came up over the horizon and took it away again. It
was such a beautiful sight. Definitely like something from another planet
as you sat on top of the world.

The top of the
mountain was like a war zone. People were lying on the ground and
throwing up all over the place. We were really moved by the will of the
human spirit to get up this mountain. People were pushing deep, as deep
as they could, to conquer this hill and it was amazing to witness.

Check
out the massive glacier.

We only stayed
on top of the mountain for 20 minutes because it was so cold and very difficult
to breathe. We took our pictures looked around as long as we could and
then started back down. We got a picture of the Stella Point sign on the
way down because it was too dark on the way up.

It
was the perfect day to summit a mountain and an even more perfect view as we
headed down the mountain back to the campsite.

We
made it back to the campsite just shy of 3 hours. With a pole in each
hand we practically skied down the mountain on the loose gravel. We took
an hour nap, forced ourselves to eat and drink a little something and continued
our journey down the mountain. It's almost mind blowing just how fast
you start to recover from altitude sickness as you descend in elevation.
We were getting our pep in our step back and our headaches and nausea was
subsiding.

As
we descended, the vegetation and temperature drastically changed and so did our
outfits as we shed layers upon layers of our clothes.

Nothing
but ear-to-ear grins on the way down.

Over
13 hours of hiking and we finally made it to the campsite. Saying that we
were exhausted was an understatement.

We
hung out with the guys for a few hours and then hit the sack hard. We are
fairly certain that we were fast asleep by 8:30 pm that night

Day Six: March
13th

Starting
elevation: 9,843 feet (3,000 meters)

Ending
elevation: 5,905 feet (1,800 meters)

We rose from a deep sleep
at 5:30 am. With dark circles and puffy eyes, we made our best attempt at
starting Day 6 off on the right foot.

The
guys were great and serenaded us with traditional African songs and dance moves
at 6:45 am. Yes, they do this for all trekkers but it was still special
and we appreciated their spirit. We were very fortunate to have such a
great crew. The Kili Posse have been friends for over 10 years and work
together on each of their treks. While other trekkers didn't even get a chance
to meet their crew, we ate dinner in their tent and laughed and exchanged
stories with ours. They definitely made our trip more memorable and we
can't thank them enough for that.

It
was a short one and half hour trek down to the main gate. We caught one
last glimpse of the mountain that moved us.

Magically, our
puffy eyes and dark circles disappeared as we made it to the bottom of the
mountain. We were presented with our official summit certificates and we
proudly took this dorky picture!

Mount
Kilimanjaro challenged us, moved us, changed us and no matter what, summiting
this mountain is something that can never be taken away. The journey of this
climb will forever have a special place in our hearts.

Don't forget
to leave us a comment in our comment section below and a postcard will be sent
your way. We realize that is not the most enticing bribe but it's
all we can do.

We should have
a post up sooner rather than later covering our time in Zanzibar.

14 comments:

Amazing. This is a great trip. I know the last part of each mountain, close to the summit, they are always an adrenalin rush. I'm happy you realised your dream, it's the reason you decide to be in Africa. You are so beautiful together and you are always smilling even if it's difficult. You are incredible. I really love your photos and all your post. Bonne continuité à vous deux Stephanie Fullum xxx

What a story! I enjoyed it so much to read this. Makes me longing for climbing this mountain as well. It's wonderful how you both are able to bring your happy faces in the hard times as well.Wish you the best! Oh, and good luck in Colombia! ;-)Love,Leonore

Truly moving! Your amazing adventure just keeps getting better! Josh you really need to learn at least one Carlos Vives song. How blown away would Victor had been had you started singing to him!? Thank you Google - Your "Joshua Trees" are called Giant groundsel (senecio kilimanjari). Can't wait to read your next story. Keep on trekking!

We have been waiting for this post. When I was in elementary school about a hundred years ago, I read an account of a climb on Kilimanjaro. I don't remember all that was said, but I do remember the sense of wonderment that the author expressed. You experienced and captured the same feelings. Guess the mountain has not changed much. Thanks for the great post. We are already looking forward to the next one. Mom and Dad

I check often to see what you guys have posted and where you’ve been. I love living vicariously through the two of you! Hang tough, I know you guys are missing everyone but the time has gone by SO quickly. It won’t be much longer before you’re back in reality and starting the next chapter of your lives. No need to send a postcard; I was selfish and kept taking from you guys by reading of your travels and not leaving anything behind to let you know that what you post matters! Be safe, enjoy and keep on blogging! Patrice

I so look forward to your posts! You two are an inspiration to Lorrie and me; we're looking to travel the world the way you two have. I hope you'll do some sort of presentation for your friends where you further relate your adventures, and share what you've learned about traveling the globe.

Hi! I'm so proud of you both! There's nothing like the feeling of climbing a mountain because people don't truly understand the feeling until they experience it. It is a feeling that makes you a stronger person and will stay with you for life. It's worth all the hard work! Those Alpine starts are tough, but the view of the stars and the comradery of the crew make it breathtaking. Awesome job!

Hello!!! Have been following all of your posts and love that you are sharing your wonderful travels! Living vicariously through you guys! Congrats on this accomplishment, I can't imagine how awesome it must have been!!

Leanne and Josh, I would love to know what type of camera/video equipment you're using. Are you using a separate camera and video camera? Also, have you brought a laptop computer on your travels, or are your updates through internet cafes?

I stumbled upon this blog as I was looking up information about Zanzibar (planning to go to Malawi and Tanzania this summer). Last summer I hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu and I had a similar experience with my tour. We bought the cheapest tour possible and thought we would be carrying all of own stuff. I even asked if I needed to bring my own silverware. Feeling pretty silly now because we had coursed meals for lunch and dinner and "tea time" before dinner plus like two chefs, two tour guides, and a slew of porters for our group of ~16. I find it interesting you had a similar experience there. Anyway, Kudos for making it to the summit! I've heard some intense stories about Kilimanjaro.